The Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation (OOF) has carved a niche for itself as a leading voice and unique platform for the most vulnerable members of society to access and receive free medical attention. This has become a yearly intervention as the foundation observes World Diabetes Day every November 14th to create awareness and sensitize members of the public on the need to screen for early signs of diabetes and provide them with some level of medical intervention.
As part of activities to mark this year’s World Diabetes Day, the Foundation organised an advocacy lecture series, where private and public sector players were in attendance to lend their voices to the conversation and chart the way forward by rekindling hope for the sufferers of the disease.
According to the latest medical statistics, diabetes affects 537 million people globally, in Africa 25 – 30 million people are affected, while in Nigeria 7-10 million are people affected, it kills 7 million people yearly, and affects 1 in 10 Nigerian adults, this by implication means that three quarter of diabetes sufferers in the world live in Nigeria. The disease has been identified as the major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attack, stroke and lower limb amputation amongst others.
A notable voice and leading advocate of the campaign against diabetes in Nigeria is the Founder/Chairman Board of Trustees, Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation, and former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who has taken the responsibility upon himself to raise the consciousness of people about the deadly but preventable and manageable disease.
Obasanjo who has been a sufferer of the disease for the past 40 years, said “The first is to assure sufferers of the disease that it is a manageable condition. He identified things sufferers must always do which include: proper diet in the right proportion; rest properly; engaging in regular exercise; using prescribed medications religiously; involve in social interaction and lastly of course should be self-contentment which is very important. He thanked everyone who has been part of the success story particularly, the current partners for their enormous contributions.”
The Chief Executive Officer, Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation, Dr. Olalekan Makinde said, “Aligning with the United Nations theme which focuses on education and protecting the future, we decided to invite students from secondary and tertiary institutions to be part of this year’s lecture series which has become a yearly exercise for the foundation.”
Makinde, reiterated the foundation’s commitment towards ensuring that health related issues particularly, non-communicable diseases are given adequate attention. He said, “We at Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation are delighted to be at the forefront of this campaign, which we strongly believe would make significant impacts in the lives of people suffering from diabetes and other non-communicable diseases. Therefore, we seek more collaborations and sponsorship from well-meaning individuals and organisations to help us achieve our ultimate goal.”
“The foundation has succeeded in screening about 3000 people for diabetes, hypertension and other non-communicable diseases. And another 2500 people have been screened for various eye defects and have also been given glasses to about 2000 to aid their sights. The foundation is currently facilitating medical surgeries for people whose cases require surgery with 300 people earmarked as the target for this phase.” Makinde added.
Ogun State Commissioner of Health, Dr. Tomi Coker who led the government’s delegation to this year’s lecture series while contributing to the conversation during the panel discussion said, “Diabetes indeed is a medical condition. However, it has a negative socio-economic impact on any nation’s development, diabetes is a problem that must be tackled with all seriousness. When you look at the complications, it affects people in their most productive time of life.”
The Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation (OOF) is a Non-Profit organisation established to confront issues that touch the bane of human existence such as security, health, education, food & nutrition, and youth empowerment which are capable of affecting productivity in Nigeria and indeed Africa.
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